The Frenemy ( A TMNT FANFIC )
by SkullKidsAlly
Summary: If you wanted to save a loved one, how far would you go? Far enough as to turning to your arch nemesis for guidance? The one person you swore you would NEVER speak a word to again? Well Elisa was desperate-desperate for answers, but now she's in too deep. It's her own fault for making an agreement anyways... But breaking her promise could cost her everything, even her life...
1. 1 The Deal

The Frenemy

Disclaimer: I DO NOT OWN ANY CHARACTERS OF THE TEENAGE MUTANT

NINJA TURTLE FRANCHISE, THIS IS STRICTLY JUST A FANFIC

1 ~ The Deal

"So you'll do it?" Sensei pressed. We were on the top floor of what

looked like an abandoned asylum. I sighed, looking out at the starry scenery.

Everything was changing. Looking down on the crowded city, I felt like

everyone- everything was against me. I wouldn't have come to Shredder,

out of all people, if I didn't wanna find my brother. "I can't make any

promises." I warned him. Shredder spun around in a swift motion, "What do you

mean 'you can't make any promises'?!" He shouted.

"You came to me, desperate to find your brother and I offered you a deal- hell for all we

know, you're brother could be-" "Okay!" I finally gave in. Shredder turned back towards the

gloomy sky. I felt my stomach tighten, I didn't like this deal not one bit. I was never a good

liar, now he wanted me to "befriend" these people to lure them to him? I wouldn't last a day

without them finding out. "Where can I find these-these turtles?" I asked. The wind began

to brush my hair. Shredder clenched his fists and chuckled. "What a lovely game

this'll be." He croaked.


	2. 2 A Hard Day's Night

The Frenemy

Disclaimer: I DO NOT OWN ANY CHARACTERS OF THE TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLE FRANCHISE, THIS IS STRICTLY JUST A FANFIC!

2 ~ A Hard Day's Night

"AGAIN!" Splinter ordered. The four mutant brothers groaned. "Sensei," Leonardo, the oldest, sighed. "We've been practicing the same moves for almost an hour, can't we rest for just a minute?" He pleaded.

The elderly rat shook his head and rested his palm on his snout. "Guys, let's not forget that we got our asses kicked by the Shredder." Raphael recalled.

The three other brothers whipped their heads in Raph's direction. "I can't believe it," Donatello raised his non-existent eyebrows. "Raphael isn't complaining-for the first time!" Raph rolled his eyes at the sarcastic remark and approached Leonardo.

"And might I remind you, Raph, that that happened FOUR months ago!" Leo objected. Raphael opened his mouth to tell his brother off but was quickly cut short. "That's a poor excuse, my son." Splinter admitted, appearing behind Leo and Raphael. He rested his paws on both their shoulders.

The two brothers never seemed to get along ever since Leonardo was chosen as leader of the group. Leo had tried his best to bury the hatchet, but Raphael wouldn't budge. Of course that's usually how Raphael is.

"At any giving moment that you four are up there, the Shredder can reappear and challenge you again. We can't let history repeat." You could hear the sadness in Splinter's voice. He spun around and took a deep breath, then turned towards the four mutants that stood before him.

"You may rest." Their sensei announced. He disappeared out of the room in a swift motion, it almost seemed like an illusion.

Leonardo turned to Raphael, who was leaning up against the wall clutching a magazine to his face. Leo charged over to where his brother stood and snatched the magazine.

"What the hell man?!" Raph whined. "How can you agree with sensei?" Leonardo hollered. Raphael pushed past his brother and picked up his sai from the floor.

"I understand that Shredder could've killed us-" "THAT'S EXACTLY MY POINT!" Raph debated. "We could've died! We can't let that happen again." He tossed his sai to the floor and crossed his arms.

Donatello and Mikey, the youngest, quietly observed the argument from a far distance. "And for that reason, I think that we should use the time we have now training for our next battle." Raph declared.

"And when is that gonna be?" Leo testified. Donny sighed and rested his head in his hands. Mikey wrapped his arms around his knees and looked away. It wasn't the first time the two bickered, but it was hard for the other two to adjust to it.

"If we stay cooped up here training, we may never battle again." The oldest turtle assured. Donny and Mikey both looked up to see Raphael's facial reaction. He just seemed stiff, like always.

"He's got a point, Raph." Donatello joined in. Raphael stared at his little brother with sharp daggers. "We've been training for months. How are we gonna know if we're good enough if we don't go up and try?" Donny reasoned.

Raphael looked at Mikey, waiting for his opinion. Mikey stared hard at the floor, avoiding Raph's stare. He looked back at his other brothers, who were also looking away.

"You can all rot in hell!" Raphael blasted, before storming out of the room. Splinter reappeared shortly after Raphael had left. The three look up at their master, with concerned eyes.

"He'll get over it." Splinter reassured his sons. "He doesn't take defeat very well." The three turtles nodded in agreement. Leo stared at the front door, as if he was waiting for it to swing open and Raphael would appear good as new. 'Why does he hate me so much?' He wondered.

"Oroku Saki is giving you time to think about all of this before you make any final moves, so at least you have something to celebrate." Casey Jones reassured his best friend, resting a hand on her knee.

Elisa let out a humorless chuckle and met his gaze, quickly breaking it after what seemed like five minutes. She always had a huge crush on Casey, but forced herself out of it as soon as she entered 'the friend zone.'

"I don't feel like celebrating. I don't like this deal one bit, I feel my stomach do somersaults even thinking about it." Elisa stated, shaking her head. She looked out at the starry setting. It had been two days since Shredder offered her the deal.

"Well with or without Oroku, we're gonna find Dylan." Casey declared. He adjusted his pearly white mask and began to fiddle with his fingernails, an in breakable habit.

"Okay, enough with the mask." His best friend demanded. He looked up and grinned. "It's not like I haven't seen your face before." She continued, shaking her head.

They were sitting by the window sill of Casey's apartment, watching the life of Manhattan go by. There wasn't much to see at this time of night, just a few stray cats digging in garbage cans trying to find a scrap for the night and a few chavs loitering outside the complex.

Casey took off his mask, revealing a pair of electric blue eyes and neatly combed, shoulder  
length black hair. He was very handsome, according to Elisa of course. His face was always very well shaved and he had a cleft in his chin which Elisa found adorable.

"Happy now?" Casey asked, raising an eyebrow. Elisa bit her lip and ran a hand through his jet black hair. She quickly looked away as soon as she heard him chuckle.

"So back to our depressing topic of the day," Casey said breaking the silence. Elisa met his gaze with concerned eyes. "What're you gonna do?" He asked. Elisa threw her head in her hands and groaned.

Casey stroked his friend's back, comfortingly. Elisa looked up at him again, running a hand through her corkscrew brown hair. "Go with it, I guess." She shrugged. Casey raised both eyebrows at her. He wiped the corner of his mouth with the back of his hand.

"Wow," He murmured. Elisa furrowed her eyebrows at him. "I never thought you'd actually go through with this-" "Hey," She cut him off. "Let's not forget, I'm doing this for my brother." She reminded him, using a sharp tone.  
The droplets of rain began to play a beat on the window, catching Elisa's attention.

"He's gotta be out there." She whispered.

**********  
Meanwhile...

Raphael sat at the very edge of the roof of an apartment complex, letting droplets of rain descend upon him. "Why does everyone have to agree with Leo?" He wondered aloud. "He's like the fucking golden child of the family." Raph observed.

Ever since Master Splinter chose Leonardo to be the leader, Raphael lost all respect for his brother. He felt as if the whole world turned on him, including his brothers. Everyone "worshiped" Leo, everyone followed his orders, and everyone agreed with him no matter what the situation was.

Raphael let out a sigh, he was hurt. He was an expert at disguising his true feelings, especially when he was hurt. That's mostly why he was angry all the time, he was too afraid to reveal how he really felt.

A distant but loud scream broke Raph away from his thoughts. "LEAVE ME ALONE! STOP FOLLOWING ME!" A feminine voice begged. Raphael looked down trying to find where the voice was coming from. There! Just below where Raph sat was a young woman surrounded by three well dressed men-Kraang.

Raph watched closely as the men drew closer to the girl. Raphael slowly and carefully slid down from the edge of the roof where he sat, landing on the escape ladder of a nearby window.

He was only three apartments away from the ground. He quickly climbed down from the ladder and leaped to the next emergency escape. He repeated the pattern till' he reached the ground.

"I TOLD YOU, I DON'T KNOW WHO APRIL IS. JUST STOP FOLLOWING ME, PLEASE!" The helpless dame pleaded. Raphael approached one of the four quietly, sai in each hand.

"We will not rest until we find the one in which you call April." One of the Kraang revealed. "Why don't you leave the girl alone, unless you want some real trouble?" Raph quipped. The four spun around quickly.

The girl let out a sigh of relief. Raphael stood in full fighting stance, ready for the Kraang to attack but instead they quietly stepped away from the young woman.

The three disappeared into the night, leaving Raphael extremely confused. "Well...that was unusually easy." Raphael commented. The girl ran a hand through her dark brown, corkscrew curls. "Thank God." She panted. "Hey!" Raph whined, facing the young woman "That was too easy!" He repeated.

The girl shrugged, "At least you didn't get hurt, I mean those guys are pretty serious." She said, rubbing her forehead with the back of her hand. "I'm Elisa." She held out her hand. Raph grabbed her hand gently and shook it, still distracted by the previous scene.

"Yeah, yeah, I'm Raph-Raphael." He replied, still looking around hoping to see another Kraang-bot. Elisa shook her head in disbelief. 'This guy seriously doesn't take defeat very well, considering there was no battle at all.'

Raphael finally gave Elisa his undivided attention. "Why are you out here anyways? Do you know how dangerous-" "How dangerous it can be for someone as delicate as me to go strolling in the streets of Manhattan at this time of night- yes I understand." Elisa sighed, exasperatedly.

Raphael threw his ends up in defense. "Didn't mean to press, I was just concerned." Raph reassured her. The rain began to pick up, descending even harder. "We better get going, before you get sick." He grabbed her wrist and pulled into the nearest building.

Once they were inside, Elisa wrapped her arms around herself. Raph rested his hands behind his head and sighed. "Do you have a place to stay?" He asked, meeting her gaze. Eliza quickly turned away and bit her lip. She felt a knot form in her throat. Her and her brother had been foster kids for as long as she can remember.

That's why she was so determined on finding Dylan. They had been tossed around from one orphanage to another, then finally became foster kids. That didn't change anything, no one really cared about them. Dylan had been missing for five years and their foster family couldn't give a rat's ass.

"Elisa?" Raphael'a voice pulled her away from her thoughts. She quickly wiped her tear tracks and turned towards him. "No actually, well, I was staying with a friend but-" "I know we just met but if you need a place to stay, you can bunk with me and my brothers for the night." Raph offered.

Even though Raphael was an asshole 99% of the time, he spent the 1% of kindness mostly towards girls. Elisa hesitated for a moment. "It's just for one night, I'm not proposing." Raph joked. Elisa smiled nervously, then nodded slowly. "Okay." She replied.

Leo continued to stare at the front door. "Is it just me or has April being acting kind of distant recently?" Donatello asked, leaning against the kitchen table. Mikey chewed viciously on the slice of pizza in his hand. "What do you mean?" He responded.

Donny shrugged, "I don't know, she's just..not herself recently. Haven't you noticed?" Mikey shook his head. He opened the pizza box and licked his lips. "Alright, did everyone eat, cause I spy one last slice of pizza with my name written all over it." Mikey announced. "Leo?"

Leonardo was frozen by the door, staring at it. Donatello sighed, he had been standing there since Raphael stormed out. "He's gonna come back." He reassured his older brother. Leo sighed and plopped down on the couch.

Donny grabbed the last slice of pizza, placing it on a plate and walked over to Leo. "Cheer up," He said handing him the plate. "You know Raph doesn't hate you, he's just worried that's all." Donny always had a way of making things seem less complicated.

Leo forced a smile and chomped down on the slice of pizza. Master Splinter strolled into the living room. "Still not here?" He asked. Mikey and Donatello shook their heads in response. Splinter let out an exasperated sigh. "We're gonna have a serious talk when he arrives." He mumbled.

And as if on cue, the front door swung open and Raphael appeared with Elisa behind him. The three turtles let out a sigh of relief and got up to greet their brother. "Where've you been, man?" Mikey asked, greeting his brother with a slap on the back.

"Don't worry about it." Raph replied. He cleared his throat as soon as Splinter appeared before him. "Uh, this is Elisa. We met outside one of the apartment complexes." Raphael stepped to the side, revealing a soaking wet Elisa.

"Hi." She whispered. Donny raised an eyebrow and grinned. "I'm Donatello and this is our littlest brother Mikey." He said, gesturing to his brother who was trying his best not to laugh.

"Hey!" Raphael spat. "It's not like that, she was attacked by the Kraang." He explained. The three turtles gasped in awe and crowded the two. "Well, not really attacked." Elisa corrected him, rolling her eyes. She never liked being the center of attention.

Master Splinter cleared his throat. The four brothers stepped to the side, giving their father some room. "You're welcome to stay as long as you wish, the Kraang are serious business and we shouldn't risk sending you up there again... Not until we know its safe." Splinter said.

Elisa rubbed the back of her neck. "I just need some rest, it's been a long day." She sighed. "Of course, you can bunk in my room." Leonardo offered. Raphael rolled his eyes. "No Leo, don't sacrifice your room, she'll sleep in my room." He said, emotionless.

"It's really not that big of a deal, really, I'll just sleep on the couch." Elisa decided. "No it's fine, I don't sleep anyways." Raph insisted causing Elisa to smile. She cleared her throat and ran her fingers through her soaking wet hair.

She turned to Splinter. "Um, is it okay if I shower?" She asked, ever so politely. Master Splinter smiled warmly. "Of course, I'll show you where it is." He led Elisa out of the room.

Raphael turned towards his brothers and sighed happily. Donatello and Mikey burst into laughter as soon as Splinter and Elisa disappeared from sight. "So?" Donny pressed. "Who's the chick?" Mikey nudged Raph.

"It's not that serious, she was getting cornered by the Kraang so I decided to help her out." Raph explained. Leonardo scratched the back of his head. "I-we were worried about you." He revealed.

Raphael raised an eyebrow at him. "Really?" He challenged. "Cause given by the way you, the leader of our group, turned on me I would've expected you to throw a party while I was gone." Leonardo scoffed. "Whatever." He murmured, walking away.

"On a more important note, where's Spike?" Raphael headed for the kitchen table. "Raph," Donny sighed. "Hey, did you guys feed him while I was gone? He can't go an hour without-" "RAPH!" Donny shouted. Raphael turned around and crossed his arms.

"What?" He responded. "Don't you see how hard Leo is trying?" Donny said, gesturing to the door leading to Leo's room. Raphael shrugged, turning back around to pet Spike, who was nibbling on a piece of celery.

"Ever since Splinter chose him o be leader, you've been treating him like-" "Shit." Mikey finished the sentence while he set up his video game. "Yeah." Donny raised his eyebrows at Mikey, given that he's never cursed a day in his life. He was the most laid back out of the four, you wouldn't really expect that from him also since he was the youngest.

"Your point being?" Raph said in an uninterested tone. Donny mopped his forehead with his palm. "Raph, Leo's trying to make peace with you but you keep pushing him away." Mikey asserted.

Raph sighed, letting his shoulders drop. "It's really not a big issue, I'll talk to him in the morning if it bothers him that much. Let's just drop it for now, 'kay?" He suggested.

Donny threw his hands into the air. He had given up trying to make things work between his two brothers. Mikey simply shook his head and began his video game.

Raphael held out his hand, allowing Spike to crawl up onto his hand and climb onto his shoulder.

Elisa reappeared into the room, wrapped in a robe and her hair tied up in a bun, looking less stressed than before. "Hey," She greeted, sitting down on one of the kitchen chairs.

Raphael glanced at her, before heading towards the couch. "You okay?" Elisa asked in a concerned tone. "I'm just peachy, can we just let it go please?" Raph begged.

Elisa shrugged innocently, "You just seem...tense." She said. Raphael glanced at her, gesturing her to take a seat next to him. "Everything's just been tense lately, between me and my brother. Kinda seems like we aren't brothers anymore." Raphael looked down at his hands.

Elisa tilted her head in an observant way. She wasn't really a peacemaker but she knew how to give advice and when to give it.

"Look, I may not know you very well but you seem like a cool guy." This caused Raphael to look up at her. His emerald eyes met with her light hazel brown eyes. "I'm sure whatever you have going on with your brother will clear up before you know it." Elisa reassured the mutant.

She smiled, revealing a dimple in her right cheek. Raphael broke their gaze, turning towards the TV. Mikey was playing some racing game, as usual. He looked up at Leonardo's door and sighed.

"At least you have a brother-brothers." Elisa said, breaking the silence. Raphael looked back at Elisa. She cleared her throat and began to twirl a strand of hair around her index finger.

"My little brother, Dylan, has been missing for almost five years now." Elisa fixed her gaze on the 8-bit graphics of the video game Mikey was playing.

"Sometimes I wonder if he really is out there... It almost seems like it's all a dream and one day I'll eventually wake up and everything will go back to normal...whatever normal is."


	3. 3 You Don't Have A Choice Anymore

The Frenemy

Disclaimer : I DO NOT OWN ANY CHARACTERS OF THE TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLE FRANCHISE, THIS IS STRICTLY JUST A FANFIC!

3 ~ You Don't Have A Choice Anymore

Louise inhaled what was left of the cigarette she began smoking about an hour ago, which wasn't much. She kneeled down to Elisa's height and blew a puff of smoke in her face.

"Now let's set the record straight here," Louise croaked. You can most definitely tell that she'd spent the last few years smoking her life away.

"I'm not your mommy or your caretaker. And this whole fostering shit ain't permanent, so don't catch feelings." Louise wasn't much different than the caretakers at the orphanages, Elisa and Dylan had been through.

Louise had ocean blue eyes and dirty blonde hair that was pulled into a high ponytail. She always wore camis or tight t-shirts and track pants. She looked nicer than she came on.

"You are to go to school and behave yourselves. I get one phone call or one fucking letter from the school complaining about your behavior, you're ass is out on the streets." Louise warned.

She gripped the tip of Elisa's chin and pulled her face close to hers. "I don't play games, girlie," She snarled. Her eyes flickered from the seven-year-old to her frightened little brother Dylan, who was only a year younger. "You and your little fuck-up for a brother are here 'cause I need a job and they won't let me have it if I don't prove that I'm over my addiction." Louise continued.

She stood back up and adjusted her neon pink cami. "Go and get unpacked." She ordered before walking away. Elisa turned towards her brother. He was chewing his bottom lip, forcing back tears.

She wrapped her arm around Dylan. "It's gonna be okay," She reassured him. He rubbed his lids and looked up at Elisa, with red rimmed eyes. "Like Madame Louise said, this isn't permanent. We'll be outta here before you know it." Elisa brushed a lock of Dylan's golden brown hair behind his ear.

His mesmerizing emerald eyes met with her soft hazel eyes. She wrapped her arms around him and pulled him into a warm embrace. "We're gonna find a better home, I promise." Elisa whispered, while she stroked her brother's back gently.

Elisa pulled her damp curly hair into a messy bun and left a few strands of hair dangling, framing her face perfectly.

She buttoned up her jean jacket and tip toed out of Raph's room, making sure it looked exactly the same as it was the night before when she had arrived.

Raph was knocked out on the couch. He was lying face down, his body sprawled over the love seat.

The two had stayed up till' 1 in the morning talking away. Elisa still felt horrible for going along with Shredder's plan. She may not know the turtles & Splinter very well but they seemed like a very nice family and she didn't feel right screwing things up for them.

Elisa made her way to the kitchen. The clanking of pots and slamming of cabinets woke Leo up. The mutant slugged to the kitchen to investigate where the noise was coming from.

"What're you looking for?" Leo asked in his husky morning voice. Elisa quickly turned around and sighed. "Sorry, I was looking for the coffee pot." She responded with an apologetic expression.

Leonardo kneeled down and opened the cabinet located under the sink. He felt around for the dainty pot until he spotted it under the pot he used to boil Ramen noodles for the boys. He handed it to Elisa and plopped down at the kitchen table.

Though he hasn't said much to her or about her last night, Leo felt uncomfortable with Elisa. Why did the Kraang back off so easily? If they really wanted to know about April, they would've done more than just walk away without a fight. And why wasn't Elisa reluctant to go home with Raph? He was a freaking walking-talking turtle for Pete's sake!

Overall, Leo didn't trust her and it seemed-according to him of course- that he was the only one that felt this was. Donnie feels that it's the same situation with April and as far the Kraang situation goes, they're not fully developed robots. Donnie always tried to be positive, so of course he would welcome Elisa with open arms.

Mikey-well Mikey is Mikey. He's the most laid back and fun person out of the four. He doesn't really look too much into anything and is willing to protect anybody-even a sociopath- just to get the satisfaction of doing a good deed.

And Raphael was obviously mesmerized by Elisa's beauty and wanted to make a big hero gesture to win her approval. You would think Raph, being the hot head of the group, would at least question her before bringing her home like a stray dog. But he's just as love struck as Donnie.

"Not to sound rude or anything, but why are you here?" Leo asked, narrowing his eyes at Elisa. That was something he'd seen Splinter do whenever he wanted information. Elisa watched with great attention as the coffee began to brew. She glanced over her shoulder and shrugged.

"Just needed a place to stay for the night." She responded as nonchalant as she could. Way to be discrete, Leonardo thought as he watched her grab a mug from the cupboard above the sink. "Want some?" She offered, waving the mug in his face. Leo shook his head and leaned back in his chair.

"So," He said, dragging the 'o'. Once the pot was halfway full, Elisa poured some coffee into the turquoise colored mug. She turned around to face Leo and took a long sip of her beverage, waiting for him to continue. "What did the Kraang want with April?" He inquired, staring hard at Elisa.

She fixed her gaze on the pile of magazines, scattered on the kitchen table. "I mean, sure, they've been wanting to kidnap her for months now but why would they bother you about it? Since you claim you don't know April." The turtle continued. Elisa looked back at Leo with cold eyes and set down her cup on the counter.

"You don't trust me do you?" She challenged. Leonardo shrugged and began to play a rhythmic beat on the table with his fingers. "I never said that, I was just making conversation but since you're implying it-" "I'm leaving today anyways so you don't have to worry about me, anymore." Elisa announced.

Leonardo shrugged again and stood up. He flashed Elisa what was supposed to be a smirk but ended up looking like a distorted frown, then walked away. Elisa rolled her eyes and grabbed her mug.

She wasn't even there for a full 24 hours and they were already getting suspicious- at least one of them. Today was her last day she planned on being with them so she didn't really worry about their opinions on her.

She was glad she had made her decision. Like Casey told her, they're going to find Dylan with or without Oroku Saki's help. Elisa also realized that working beside the Shredder wouldn't change what he did to her. He ruined her life and yet she still wanted to turn to him for help.

She pulled her phone out of her pocket and dialed Casey's number. She glanced at the clock on the stove, it was 7:04 AM, Casey had to be up by now. After three rings, he finally picked up. The sound of heavy metal blasted in Elisa's ear. "Okay, you are definitely awake." She chuckled.

"What's up, Lis?" Her best friend greeted in his Brooklyn accent. She smiled, blushing a little. It was probably his accent that made Casey attractive. Elisa always found accents a turn on. "Are you busy?" She asked, glancing at the clock again.

"Not really, no. Wanna meet at The Grove?" He offered. Ever since Elisa first met Casey, when they were freshmen's in high school, they always had breakfast at The Grove. While Elisa made her way over there, Casey would stop at Starbucks and grab coffee for them then meet her over there. It beat any date she'd ever been on.

"Sure, sure." Elisa responded with excitement in her voice. "Alright then, see you there." Casey replied. Shortly after she bid farewell, Elisa hung up. She looked up to see Raph leaning against the refrigerator.

"That your boyfriend?" He interrogated with cold eyes. "Not really." Elisa shrugged. Raphael sighed, he knew that if she walked out the door, there'd be a slight chance that she would come back.

Elisa coughed awkwardly, trying to break the silence. "I'm, uhh, leaving today." She announced. It felt awkward telling people when she was departing. Back at the foster home, no one ever asked where she was going or when she'll be coming back, so she felt uneasy announcing her departure.

"It's your choice," Raphael decided, a glum look about his face. "I'm not gonna force you to stay, just..." He paused, looking up at her. His emerald eyes met her soft hazel eyes. Elisa quickly broke their gaze and turned around. She squeezed her eyes shut, forcing back her tears.

Dylan had the same color eyes that Raphael has. Had. She hated using that word and it bothered her when others used that word. It felt like a bullet to the chest hearing it, 'cause it took away the hope of Dylan being alive. She knew he was, but she didn't wanna be shot down by past tense use of words.

"Be careful." Raphael continued. Elisa nodded quickly, almost as an obedient gesture. She turned around and flashed him a smile, before heading towards the front door. Raphael followed her with his eyes and shook his head sadly. Be careful. The words echoed in his head over and over.

Sure he didn't know her that long, but that didn't change the fact that he liked her. Elisa always knew not to grow too attached. She thought the turtles were nice but she didn't want to befriend them this way.

"Do you ever plan on going back to school?" Casey asked, staring at his empty cup. Him and Elisa had just arrived at The Grove and were waiting for the waitress to come back with their breakfast.

Elisa shrugged, "Maybe. I just have a lot going on right now and I don't need the stress of school to top everything." She responded glumly. Casey graduated a year early and was looking all over Manhattan for a decent job to pay off his apartment.

Finally, the tall red-headed waitress came back. She reminded Elisa of Annalise, her foster sister. She had the same rosy cheeks, blue gray eyes but a totally different hair color.

The waitress was probably a couple inches taller than Casey. She had a piercing in her right nostril. She placed down two plates: one had pancakes with whipped cream and four blueberries on top and the other had a plain breakfast burrito.

"That's all your getting?!" Elisa said, raising her eyebrows in bewilderment. Casey smirked, "Is it a surprise that I'm not that hungry?"

"Uhh, yeah, considering you're a fat ass." She joked. Casey shook his head and took a huge bite out of the B&E burrito. "There's the Casey Jones that I know." Elisa smiled brightly at her best friend.

Casey wiped the corner of his mouth with the back of his hand and set down his burrito. "Have you decided what you're gonna do about Oroku Saki's plan?" He inquired. Elisa grabbed her cup quickly and took a long sip of her cappuccino. Casey rolled his eyes and waited for her to finish.

"I told them I was leaving." Elisa revealed, avoiding her friend's stare. "For good?" He pressed. Elisa nodded sadly. "That's good." Casey mumbled.

Elisa looked up in an offended gesture. "You were the one who suggested I do this in the first place!" She snapped. "Yeah, well, I changed my mind. Working for Oroku Saki isn't gonna take back what he did to your family." Casey reminded her.

Elisa rolled her eyes and began to pick at the blueberries that floated on the thick layer of whipped cream. Suddenly she wasn't hungry anymore. "Sorry Lis..." Casey placed his hand on hers, but she quickly pulled it away. "It's fine-I'm fine, can we just drop it?" Elisa pleaded. Casey threw his hands up in surrender. "Thank you." Elisa whispered.

"Mikey, quit cheating!" Raph shouted, pulling the controller closer to his face. They were playing Mario Kart and ,as always, Mikey was winning. "Hey! It's not my fault you're a sore loser!" Mikey giggled.

Raph threw the controller onto the floor while Mikey continued to play. "Whatever," He scoffed. "This game is stupid anyways." April pushed past Raphael and strolled into the kitchen. "Morning sleepy-head." He greeted warmly.

Donnie jumped out of his seat violently and went to go greet April. "Where's Leo?" Raph scanned the lair with his eyes, looking for his brother. "In his room watching Space Heroes." Mikey replied. Raphael chuckled at this response and made his way to Leo's room.

Leonardo sat in front of his TV, watching his favorite show with full attention. "Hi." Raph said. Leonardo looked up, surprised to see his hot-headed brother so calm. He turned off his TV and stood up quickly. "Hey, is everything okay?" He asked ever so calmly, trying hard not to piss Raphael off.

"Yeah, I just..wanted to talk." Raph responded. Him and Leo both sat at the edge of his bed awkwardly. They stared at the poster of Captain Ryan from Space Heroes that hung above Leo's TV. Leonardo opened his mouth to say something but Raph cut him off. "Look, I don't hate you." He started. He paused to see the expression on Leo's face as he began to talk.

"I'm just..." Raph paused again. "Jealous." He confessed. Leonardo raised his nonexistent eyebrows at his little brother. "I know what you're thinking, 'Why is Raph jealous of me?' I just feel like I have to make a big fuss to get Sensei to notice me." Raphael turned away from Leo.

"Sure, you're nerdy and you fail at being cool but when it comes to saving people and patrolling, you always know what to do. And Sensei loves that about you, that's probably why he chose you-"

"Raph," Leo interrupted. "Sensei didn't choose me because I'm smart or that I always come up with a plan, he chose me 'cause I asked to be the leader." Raphael turned to face Leo. "Really?" He seemed shocked.

"Yeah," Leo chuckled. "And if it bothers you this much, I'll try not to go all 'hero-boy' on you when we're training." He placed a hand on Raph's shoulder awkwardly. "We okay?" He asked with sincere eyes. Raph nodded and pushed his hand away. "That doesn't mean we're gonna get touchy-feely." He joked, giving Leo a light push. Leonardo pushed Raph harder and then they begin to wrestle.

Splinter stood at the doorway and smiled brightly.

The chilled air nipped at Elisa's skin occasionally, causing her to shiver violently. She had just finished her shift at a local coffee shop and was now heading to Casey's apartment.

It felt good knowing that she didn't have to play the "damsel in distress" and hope one of the turtles would show up. She hired some of Casey's friends, the other night, to dress up exactly like the Kraang droids. They stood near the turtle's manhole and waited for one of them to show up. She can still remember what the Shredder had told her the day they made the deal.

[ Flashback ]

"Once you make your decision, it's final. You can't change your mind all of a sudden 'cause remember, you came to me." Oroku Saki said, towering above Elisa.

Shredder grinned evilly. "I'm surprised you'd even give me a passing glance, considering I-"

"This is for Dylan, so don't get greedy." Elisa reminded him. Shredder raised his right arm slowly and smacked her hard, leaving a stinging pain in Elisa's right cheek.

He grabbed the collar of Elisa's shirt and pulled her face close to his, the way Madame Louise used to do. "Don't think that I owe you because of what I did. You WILL find the turtles and lure them to me." Shredder ordered. He let go of Elisa, causing her to fall to the ground.

Elisa shook this thought out of her head. It wasn't like the Shredder had eyes everywhere. He couldn't do anything to her unless he knew that she dropped the deal.

The sound of a tin trashcan falling over caused Elisa to break away from her thoughts. She spun around quickly. "Hello?" She hollered. There was no one around...according to her.

She shrugged and continued on her way to Casey's apartment. She had been bunking with Casey ever since they met. Elisa hasn't been to her foster home since she was fourteen.

She was seventeen now, almost a legal adult, so what was the point of going back there?

A shiver ran up her spine. Thinking of her foster home always made Elisa uneasy. She let out a sigh of relief when she neared the apartment complex Casey lived in.

As she strolled to the front doors, she got the weird sensation that someone was watching her. She turned and gasped in horror then everything went black...

An hour later, Elisa awoke with a terrible headache. She had a weird taste in her mouth. She had definitely been drugged. She looked up to find Oroku Saki towering above her.

"Do you think I'm an idiot, Elisabeth Martinez?" The sound of her full name being used made her cringe. "What're you talking about?" Elisa panted.

"Spare me the idiocy, I know you dropped the deal." Shredder revealed. Elisa looked around, there were Foot soldiers everywhere. She attempted to get up, only realizing she had been tied to a chair with wires.

Elisa let out a sharp cry of pain. She could feel the wires cutting into her wrists. Salty tears spilled out of her eyes and onto her cheeks. "Why are you doing this?" She cried.

"Because what you don't seem to realize is that you don't have a choice anymore." The Shredder answered as if it were the dumbest question he had ever been asked.

"I offered you a deal which you accepted. You were warned that once you made your decision, it's final, you have to do what I tell you." He explained. He let out a disappointed sigh. "But now I see you've failed to understand."

Oroku Saki nodded at one of the ninjas then strolled away as casual as ever. "WHERE ARE YOU GOING?!" Elisa shouted.

Two foot ninjas now stood before her. They exchanged glances then one by one began to attack Elisa. One soldier grabbed her by her ponytail and held her head back while the other punched her repeatedly.

Blood trickles down her nose and pain struck her whole face. Another Foot ninja decided to join the two, wrapping a nunchaku around Elisa's neck and pulled tightly. All the air in her lungs disappeared and suddenly everything became blurry.

April sat beside Master Splinter and closely observed as the four mutants began their training. "Now, pay attention to how and when they attack each other." Splinter ordered.

Donnie and Raphael stood in fighting stance, waiting to begin. "Hajime!" Splinter shouted. Donatello thrusted his staff at Raphael, aiming for his stomach but Raph dodged it. He quickly swung his leg over, hitting Donnie right under his chin causing him to topple over.

Donnie quickly arose and dodged another one of Raphael's blows and jabbed him with his staff. The two danced around each other for a bit but quickly stopped when they heard a knocking at the door.

"I didn't say stop." Splinter grumbled, shaking his head. "I'll get it." Leonardo announced. Raphael and Donatello quickly started up again after Leo exited the dojo.

It was unusual for anyone to knock at their door unless it was April, but since April was already at the lair it was probably Elisa. Leonardo quickly paused. What if it is Elisa? He thought.

Leonardo felt uneasy having Elisa around ever since yesterday so why should he let her back in? Then again it wasn't his choice who should come into the lair and who shouldn't. He answered the door anyways.

Elisa stood before him, slime all over her from trudging through the sewers. Her whole face was swollen, her nose all bloody and scars were all over her. "Is it okay if I stay here for a while?" She asked this as if it were a normal day.

Leonardo widened his eyes at the sight of her. 'This was definitely not a joke anymore, someone is definitely after Elisa.' He thought. "Of course, come inside." Leonardo responded, gently taking Elisa's hand and guiding her inside.

Suddenly, it wasn't a game anymore. Shredder WAS going to kill Elisa if he didn't get his way. There was no way out...


	4. 4 Trust Me For Now

The Frenemy

Disclaimer : I DO NOT OWN ANY CHARACTERS OF THE TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLE FRANCHISE, THIS IS STRICTLY JUST A FANFIC!

4 ~ Trust Me For Now

"I'm sorry," Elisa whimpered. She was crouching in a corner, hugging her knees to her chest trying to control her seizing.

Shredder, along with three Foot ninjas, towered above her. "It's too late for 'sorry' now." He croaked. He nodded at the Foot ninja standing on the left side of him then strolled away.

Elisa squeezed her eyes shut. 'So this is it.' Her face was wet with tears. She opened her eyes and let out an ear-splitting scream. "NO!"

The four turtles bounded into the living room and gasped in horror. Elisa's body was sprawled on the floor, shaking violently. Raphael darted towards her. "Raph, don't touch her!" Donatello warned him.

"What the hell am I supposed to do?" Raphael shouted back. Donatello calmly walked over to his brother. "I've read about this before, we need to position her on her side, but be very careful." He informed him.

Raphael carefully placed his hands on Elisa's hips and rolled her on her side. Leonardo and Michaelangelo watched in bewilderment, just watching her whole body twitch like that gave them chills.

"Everything's gonna be alright, Elisa, we're right here." Raphael reassured her, placing a hand on the back of her head. "No, don't hold her down! That'll make it worse!" Donnie said, pulling his brother back. "Leo, get me a cup of warm milk!" He ordered. Leonardo nodded in response and headed towards the kitchen.

Raphael dropped his face in his hands and took a deep breath. He was trying so hard not to panic but what was he supposed to do? She was seizing like crazy and they were all new to this. It was no doubt a horrific sight, which made it hard for him not to freak out.

Mikey dropped down to the floor and hugged his knees to his chest. Leonardo quickly poured the milk from the pot into a coffee mug. "Leo, hurry up with that milk!" Donatello hollered. "Sorry!" Leonardo jogged over towards his little brother and gently placed the cup in his hands.

"Is she gonna be okay?" Mikey asked, he sounded so helpless and terrified. Donatello glanced at him and nodded, "Her seizure isn't as crazy as it was before, so that's good. She's still unconscious."

"Then call the police!" Raphael barked. "And tell them what? 'We're giant walking-talking turtles who live in the sewers and our friend is having a seizure'?" Leonardo quipped. His brother darted towards him but Mikey automatically stopped him. "Now's not the time to start fights, Raph." He said, softly pushing his brother away.

Splinter strolled into the living room, a questioned look about his face. "What is going on in here? It's two in the morning!" He inquired. The four mutants looked up at their sensei, horrified looks on each pudgy face.

"Sorry if we woke you up, Sensei, we heard Elisa scream and when we went to investigate, she started having a seizure." Donatello explained. Elisa slowly sat up and looked up at Splinter, with red-rimmed eyes.

Raphael and Leonardo ran to her side immediately. They guided her to the couch and brought her the mug with warm milk. Splinter strode towards where Elisa sat. "How are you feeling?" He asked, calmly.

"I'm fine." She insisted, shaking her head. Mikey and Donnie exchanged worried glances. "Fine?!" Raph snapped. "You're not fine! You just had a seizure, you could've-"

"Raphael, it happens all the time." Elisa reassured the mutant. "I've had epilepsy since I was two years old and they occur during a nightmare which is very rare for me. I'll be okay."

Master Splinter laid a paw on Raph's shoulder. "You should try meditating." Splinter suggested. "It'll help prevent nightmares and put you at a much peaceful state of mind." Elisa nodded in agreement, taking a long sip of her milk.

"I'm fine, really, but thank you for all your help." Elisa flashed a smile to the five mutants. Splinter exited the room and the four turtles huddled around her.

Michelangelo placed his hand on her knee. "Are you sure, you're gonna be okay going back to sleep?" He asked. "We can pull an all-nighter eating pizza and playing Mario Kart." He smiled brightly. Elisa giggled and pulled him into a warm embrace. "Mikey, I promise you I'm fine. Guys, I'm okay, you can all go back to sleep." She reassured the four brothers.

"Just call us if you need anything." Leonardo said. Elisa gave him a weak thumbs up. Mikey, Donnie and Leo all exited the room while Raph stayed behind.

He sat beside Elisa and watched as she set her mug on the coffee table. "How bad is it when you have one?" He questioned. Elisa shrugged and ran a hand through her scraggly mess of hair. "I have a couple bruises and scratches after the seizure but nothing serious. Like I said, I'm-"

"No, stop saying that!" Raphael ordered. Elisa looked up at him, his emerald eyes piercing through her skull. "The day you almost got jumped by the Kraang, you said you were fine. A week ago, when you came back to the lair, nose broken and blood all over you, you said you were fine. You just had a seizure and you say you're fine, YOU ARE NOT FINE, Elisa!" He shouted. He stood up and ran his hands over his face, attempting to cool down.

"Raph," Elisa sighed. She paused, trying to look for the right words before she went on. "You already have a lot to worry about with that girl, April, I can't have you guys worrying about me too. If it's too much to handle having me here-"

"You can't go back up there again." Raph's tone was very firm as he said this. He sat back down and took Elisa's petite hands in his and looked her deep in the eyes. "Look, whoever attacked you last time is pretty serious and if we risk sending you back up there, something even worse might happen. Elisa, we're on your side. We wanna help you but it's not gonna work if you shut us out."

Elisa felt herself get lost in Raphael's eyes. They were truly mesmerizing, a complete eye sore. She shook this thought away and broke their gaze. This was the wrong time to be getting lost in anyone's eyes.

"I shut everyone out, Raph, it's just who I am." She rolled her eyes. "When I was growing up, being tossed from different orphanages, I realized that people don't care about anything but themselves. So why try and pity them with the fact that you're hurt when really they already couldn't care less?"

Raphael sighed, letting go of Elisa's hands. 'Why is she so stubborn?' He thought. ' Why can't she understand that we're the good guys? That she can open up to us as much as she wants to because we're on her side and we wanna help her?'

"Well, we're not the people at the orphanages. We're here to help you, we're on your side. We can't help you if you don't tell us what's going on." Raphael pressed. Elisa sighed, shaking her head. "I'm getting kinda tired, Raph, I'll uh talk to you in the morning." She stood up and entered his bedroom. He had "rented out" his room to her since the day she had come back to the lair.

Raphael shook his head and headed towards Mikey's room.

"We need to make sure that she does as she's told and doesn't try to slip her way out of our deal again." Shredder said, leaning over the edge of the roof, looking down at Manhattan. The Foot Clan stood before him, unmasked.

"We need someone-someone who can watch her every move and make sure she doesn't do anything stupid." One of the Foot soldiers suggested. Her dirty blonde hair was tied in a fishtail braid. She had indigo colored eyes and had a beauty mark just above her lip. She was a bit shorter than Shredder and was the youngest out of the whole clan.

Shredder turned to face his soldiers. He stepped up to the ninja who spoke. "How do I know you're up to the task, Simone?" He tested her. She smirked then became serious again. "I live to serve you, Sensei." She responded, looking him deep in the eyes. "I mean how hard can it be? Following some girl around Manhattan?" She chuckled.

Oroku Saki studied Simone's face carefully. He spun around and leaned over the edge again. The air grew thick with silence as the Foot soldiers awaited their Sensei's response.

Simone drew in a long breath, preparing for the Shredder's final answer. She wouldn't be surprised if he didn't choose her to go and follow Elisa, since she was the youngest. It wasn't that difficult of a task! If she needed to break some necks, she could. There wasn't anything Elisa could do that Simone couldn't. Simone was much stronger and more skilled than Elisa ever could be.

"I'm counting on you, Simone." Shredder finally broke the silence. It felt as if they were standing in complete silence for hours. Simone sighed blissfully. "You are allowed one mistake. I trust you will carry out this mission." He continued.

"I won't let you down, Sensei." Simone replied, smirking again. She quickly pulled her mask over her head and stepped up to the ledge. She took one last look at Shredder, before leaping off the ledge and disappearing into the night.

April tied her hair into a messy bun and stepped away from the mirror to admire her outfit. She wore a bright yellow tee and her favorite shorts with jet-black leggings.

Donatello looked up from his laptop and swooned, his cheeks turning pink. April could feel his eyes piercing into the back of her skull but she simply ignored it, it wasn't the first time Donnie stared at her and by now it didn't bother her anymore.

"I'm, uh, headed to the store do you guys need anything?" April announced. "We're running low on Ramen noodles and milk." Leonardo responded, as he watched Raphael play Pacman and attempt to win.

Elisa looked up from her novel and closed it quickly. "You mind if I come with you?" She asked, standing up slowly. Raphael's head snapped up as soon as he heard this. "I, uh, just wanted to visit a friend. It won't take long, I promise."

"Sure," April answered, smiling brightly. Elisa returned the gesture and joined April at the front door. "We'll be back." April called to the turtles, waving her hand.

Raphael shook his head and turned off his video game. "Why are you so bothered by Elisa going back up to the surface?" Mikey questioned, leaning up against the kitchen counter. Raphael let his shoulders drop and gently closed his eyes, allowing himself to calm down a bit.

"Because, Mikey, she got jumped by somebody a week ago and it's clearly not safe for her to go back to the surface without protection." Raph simply explained. His little brother rolled his eyes. "If she says she's okay, she's okay." He pointed out. Raphael tensed up, clenching his fists.

He spun around and sighed exasperatingly. "Mikey, we can't have some girl living with us if she can't trust us. What else do we know about her besides the fact that someone's after her?" Mikey stayed quiet, avoiding Raph's gaze. "That's right-nothing! She needs to stop shutting us out because we can't help her if we know nothing about her!" Raphael snatched his comic from the counter and headed towards his room, slamming the door shut.

"You've been gone for a week and you didn't bother calling me?" Casey clarified, narrowing his eyes at Elisa. She shrugged, "Sorry." She wasn't sorry. All her emotions didn't exist anymore after everything that happened with Shredder. "I couldn't reveal my location because I didn't wanna risk-" Her and Casey both glanced at April.

Elisa cleared her throat, "Uh April do you mind?" She said calmly. April looked up, her cheeks turning pink. "Oh, I'm sorry. I'll just go wait in the hallway." She announced, picking up her bags. Casey watched as April exited the room and kept his gaze on the door for a while.

"I just can't risk Oroku Saki coming after me again." Elisa continued. Casey looked up suddenly, a confused look about his face. "What do you mean again?!" He interrogated. Elisa rolled her eyes and shook her head. "I knew I shouldn't have come here." She mumbled. "Elisabeth, you can't keep associating with Oroku Saki anymore. You're gonna get killed!" Casey pointed out.

"Well then so be it!" Elisa shouted back, shooting up out of her seat. "It seems like EVERYBODY is forgetting about the fact that I'm doing this for my brother. Dylan has been missing for five years and if I have to turn to my arch-nemesis then so be it! If I have to die in order to save Dylan from wherever the hell he is then so fucking be it!"

April leaned her ear to the door and furrowed her eyebrows. "I'm getting out of here." Elisa announced, stomping her way to the door. She slammed the door shut behind her. She found April sitting at the top of the stairs with her head in her hands.

"Let's go." Elisa ordered. April looked up at her and shook her head. "You were lying this whole time." She whispered. Elisa felt her breath get hitched in her throat. Her whole world shattered into a million pieces. "We took you in because we felt bad and we wanted to help you and this is your 'thank you'?" April stood up and cornered Elisa.

"April, it may look bad but you don't even know the full story." Elisa replied, throwing her hands up in surrender. "What 'plan' were you and your friend talking about?" April interrogated. Elisa could feel the hairs on her arms raise and goosebumps form all over her body.

"Because if you cause my friends any type of pain, you will be sorry." Elisa opened her mouth to say something but April spun around and headed towards the stairs. "April, wait!" She grabbed her wrist and pulled her back in a swift motion. "You can't tell them about this."

"Oh yeah?" April scoffed. "Watch me." Elisa gripped her shoulders and shoved her against the wall. "No, you listen to me." She ordered. "My brother has been missing for five years and Shredder is my only way of finding him. I don't like the fact that I have to turn to my enemy for help either, but hey I don't see any other way of finding my brother. Hamato Yoshi and the turtles seem like very nice people and if there was another way of finding my brother I wouldn't be doing this. But it is what it is." Elisa explained.

April pushed Elisa off of her and shook her head. "You expect me to believe that?" She spat. "After what I heard in there, I don't know what to believe." She said, gesturing to Casey's apartment door. Elisa crossed her arms and narrowed her eyes at the redhead. "Why were you eavesdropping in the first place? What we talked about in there was none of your business!" She snapped.

"When it comes down to the turtles it is!" April protested. Elisa sighed and threw her head back, covering her eyes. The hallway in which they occupied grew silent. "Alright look, I know that it all looks bad but from my point of view it isn't. Just promise me you won't tell them." Elisa begged.

April studied Elisa's face for a while. Her eyes were pleading for mercy. "Whatever," She shrugged. Elisa sighed, dropping her shoulders. "But I'm warning you, the minute I see that you're putting the turtles in any type of danger or that things start to get serious, I'll tell them about EVERYTHING!" April warned her before stomping down the stairs.

Elisa stood there for a moment, biting her lip. 'This is getting a lot more serious than I hoped it would.' She thought, before following April out of the apartment complex.


	5. 5 We're A Team Now

The Frenemy

Disclaimer: I DO NOT OWN ANY CHARACTERS OF THE TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLE FRANCHISE, THIS IS STRICTLY JUST A FANFIC

A/N: Sorry it took so long for me to post this chapter. I've been procrastinating a lot and wasn't able to actually start writing this chapter until yesterday but hopefully you guys enjoy it :-)

5 ~ We're A "Team" Now

Simone stood outside The Grove, a stern look on her face. 'Time to get to work.' She thought as she entered the bistro.

Casey sat in a corner booth, stirring what was left of his beverage. Simone had searched each and every manhole the other day but couldn't find Elisa. It wasn't until April and Elisa headed over to Casey's apartment, that Simone had seen them.

Simone shuffled her way to Casey's booth. "Anyone sittin' here?" She asked, smiling brightly. Casey shook his head, still staring deeply into his cup. Simone plopped down in the leather seat and folded her hands. "You all right there, bud?" She tilted her head observantly. "Why the long face?"

Casey sighed and set down his spoon next to his mug. "Just going through a lot, I don't really want to talk about it." He replied glumly. Simone sat quietly for a while, tapping her fingernails against the smooth tabletop. "Do you know where I can find any good apartments?" She finally broke the silence.

She watched closely as Casey shifted in his seat. He obviously didn't want to be bothered, but if she was gonna follow Elisa, this was her go-to man. "Cambridge Towers has pretty decent deals on apartments. What're you looking for?" Casey said, sitting up properly.

"Nothing permanent, just a few months. I'm, uh, visiting a friend." Simone lowered her gaze to the ruby-studded tajikistan ring on Casey's right hand. It sparkled magnificently in the daylight.

"I think I have their card somewhere," Casey began digging deep into his front pockets. Simone scanned the petite restaurant, there were hardly any customers. This was actually a good thing- for her at least. She couldn't let anyone who was irrelevant to her mission know who she was or what she was doing.

Casey handed her a crumpled up piece of paper with CAMBRIDGE TOWERS printed in big black letters and the company's number below it. Simone stuffed the card in her back pocket and winked at Casey. "Thanks, bud." She stood up and let her shoulders drop. "And hopefully whatever you got going on will clear up." She flashed a smile.

Casey nodded and looked up at her. She had the most beautiful eyes- according to him at least. "I'm Casey by the way." He stood up and held out his hand. Simone reluctantly grabbed hold of his hand and shook it awkwardly. "Nice meeting you, Casey." She winked at him one last time before skipping out of the bistro.

"What's wrong with April?" Donnie interrogated, as he tinkered with his laptop. Elisa lay sprawled on the couch staring up at the ceiling. "How should I know? She was quiet the whole time we went to visit my friend the other day." She sighed, exasperatingly.

She sat up and sighed. "Why do you care about her so much, anyways?" She snapped. Donnie put down his tools and lifted his mask, revealing his dark brown eyes. "Because April and I are great friends? Why shouldn't I care about her? She's basically living with us now!" Donatello protested.

Elisa ran a hand through her hair. "Sorry, Don, I'm in one of my moods." She murmured, avoiding his gaze. Donnie plopped down next to her and rested a hand on her knee. "What's bothering you, Lis?" He asked, looking her deep in the eyes.

Elisa quickly looked away, trying to fight back tears. "My whole life, Donnie, my whole life is just...fucked up." He could hear her voice breaking.

Elisa took a deep breath and closed her eyes. She looked up at the mutant, with red rimmed eyes. "My brother has been missing for five years." She revealed, shaking her head sadly. Donnie raised his eyebrows in shock.

'So this is why she's so crabby all the time?' He pondered. 'Cause she's hurting?' Elisa ran a hand through her hair, trying to calm herself down. "Is it my fault he's gone? Was I the reason he ran away or was kidnapped?" She wondered aloud.

"Why would it be because of you?" Donatello questioned, tilting his head a bit. Elisa exhaled slowly, she felt as if she could burst into tears at any moment. She opened her mouth to say something but was interrupted by Mikey. "Uhh, Donnie?" He said, scratching the top of his scalp.

"What is it, Mikey?" Donatello rolled his eyes. "I, uhh, kind of...lost Metalhead." Mikey mumbled. Donatello's face turned blood red and his eyes widened. "You WHAT?!" He screamed. He shot out of his seat and dashed toward his little brother. "I'M GONNA KILL YOU, MIKEY!"

Elisa chuckled softly and shook her head. She stood up and lumbered her way to Raph's room. She hesitantly opened the door to find Raphael laying down and watching some old Japanese movie. He glanced at her then gestured her to come in.

Elisa shut the door behind her and watched as Raphael slowly sat up ad muted the TV. "What's up?" He greeted. Elisa sat at the edge of the bed and turned the TV off. "Let's go somewhere," She said. "Just you and me."

Raphael looked at her with an unsure look on his face. Usually he would be up for the idea, but given the fact that Elisa got jumped and had a seizure, he wasn't sure she should go up to the surface just yet. "I really think we should stay home cause you got jumped-"

"And this time I'll have a highly trained mutant ninja with me." Elisa pointed out, nudging him with her elbow. Raphael chuckled, "If you say so." He shrugged.

[ Later On ]

"So you guys do this every night?" Elisa asked, looking out over the streets of Manhattan. Raphael snuck a glance at her as she watched, in bewilderment, the life of the city fly by. "More or less, yeah." He responded.

Elisa looked at him and smiled brightly. Raph's cheeks turned bright red but luckily it was a bit dark so Elisa didn't notice. Obviously with the turtles being hidden under the streets of New York for so long, Raph had never felt this way before.

He quickly shook this thought from his head. He shouldn't feel like this, he didn't want to feel like this. But it was so hard, given that Elisa was so beautiful.

"Raph, come look!" Elisa whispered loud enough for the mutant to hear. He rushed over to where she was and focused on what she was looking at. "Kraang," He said, narrowing his eyes.

The Kraang droids were filing out of their van and entering the building across from the apartment complex Elisa and Raphael occupied. "What are they doing?!" Elisa questioned him. Raphael threw his hand over her mouth and glared at her. "Shut up, before they hear us!" He ordered.

Raphael looked over the ledge to find the Kraang had disappeared. "Alright, the Kraang droids are all inside that building over there so if we find a way to sneak inside-"

"Shouldn't we just call your brothers instead of going in there ourselves?" Elisa strongly suggested, a worried look about her face. Raphael rolled his eyes and pulled out his shell-cell and dialed Leo's number.

'I never get any freakin' recognition, NEVER!' He thought as he waited for his brother to pick up. "Yeah?" Leonardo finally answered the phone. Raph sighed angrily, "I'm gonna need you and the guys to meet me and Elisa at the building across from Cambrige Towers."

"Um...okay, why are we gonna do that?" Leo asked in a confused tone. "Because Leo, the Kraang just went inside that building and probably are up to no good and I need back up." Raph snapped.

Elisa rolled her eyes and fixed her gaze on the building across the street. Nothing seemed to be going on...for now.

Raphael hung up his phone after about five minutes and leaped over the ledge, landing on the fire escape. "What the fuck, Raph!" Elisa shouted. "Aren't we gonna wait for your brothers?"

"They're gonna meet us in the building, now jump!" Raphael commanded. "I'll be right here to catch you, kay?" Elisa took a deep breath and closed her eyes before leaping off of the ledge.

It was only a matter of seconds before she fell safely into Raphael's arms. His emerald eyes met hers and it was as if the world stopped for a moment. Time itself froze and everything stood still.

"Are you alright?" Raphael said, breaking the silence. He still held Elisa firmly in his arms. "Yeah, I'm fine." She replied, looking him deep in the eyes.

A flashing light came from inside of the building, snatching Elisa & Raph's attention. Elisa finally stood up and fixed her shirt, sneaking a glance at Raph while she did so. "Um, we should get going." Raphael suggested, heading down the fire escape. "Y-yeah we should." Elisa stuttered, following him down the steps.

[An Hour Later]

"I just don't understand why you didn't tell us you were gonna go patrolling in the first place," Leonardo repeated himself for the fifth time. The other three turtles groaned.

"Just let it go Leo," Elisa begged. "How were we supposed to know that we'd run into the Kraang?" She leaned up against the wall and crossed her arms.

They were loitering around in what seemed like the main lobby of a hospital, waiting for the Kraang to show up again. "Are we sure that the Kraang even showed up here?" Donnie asked, leaning his head against his staff.

"Yes, we seen them all go into this exact building, Donnie." Raphael answered, agitatedly. Mikey sat criss-cross next to Donnie, playing with his nunchuks. Leonardo stood by the front door, keeping an eye out for any more Kraang droids.

"I got an idea." Elisa said, snatching everyone's attention. "We split up and search every room in the building to see what the Kraang are up to." She suggested.

"Sounds good." Donnie replied, standing up straight. Elisa smiled in response and fixed her gaze on Leonardo, who had a doubted look on his face. Raph nudged his brother and glared at him. "Don't get me wrong it's a good idea but I think you should just hang back, Elisa." Leonardo suggested.

Elisa glared at him the coldest way she could. Her hands clenched into tight fists and she could feel her head about to burst. "So you're suggesting that I stay behind just cause I'm a girl?" She snarled.

Leo's eyes widened and he shook his head violently. "Of course not, I just-" "Leo, we might as well let her tag along since she's already here." Donnie swooped in. Raph and Mikey nodded in agreement, both avoiding Elisa's gaze.

"Okay, just try not to do anything reckless." Leonardo sighed. Elisa rolled her eyes and pushed past him. "Let's go!" She shouted. Mikey giggled, "You just got served...by a girl!" He teased Leonardo. Mikey & Raph chuckled and followed Elisa down the hallway.

Elisa led them to the staircase and spun around. "So me and Donnie will go search the rooms downstairs," Leonardo announced. "You, Mikey and Raph can search upstairs." Elisa nodded in response and headed up the stairs, the three mutants following her as well.

They climbed a few more flights of stairs before reaching the second floor. Everything was dark except for a few dimly lit rooms. There was a musty scent that filled the halls, convincing them that this hospital had been vacant for some time.

"How many rooms are in this hallway?" Elisa asked, scanning the whole area with her eyes. Mikey began swinging his nunchuks, ignoring Elisa's question, and accidentally whacked Raph in the back of the head.

"Watch it, you moron!" Raphael spat, shoving his little brother against the wall. Elisa rolled her eyes and headed down the hallway. There were about seven rooms, but each room was either stacked high with cardboard boxes or completely empty.

Elisa pushed open the first door to her right and winced as a bitter odor took over the whole room. This room looked like where you would come to get your vaccine. There were broken syringes and pill bottles everywhere.

'This place seems completely useless,' Elisa thought as she exited the room. 'Why would the Kraang bother showing up here?' As she stepped out into the hallway, she noticed that Mikey and Raph weren't by the top of the stairs anymore. 'Probably went to search the rooms.'

There was a loud clanging sound coming from the end of the hallway, pulling Elisa from her thoughts. She tiptoed down the hall, peeping her head in each room until she came to the last door on the right.

The door was left halfway open but Elisa didn't dare push it all the way. There were three Kraang droids standing with their backs to the door. They seemed to be looking at something, judging by the way they stood so close to each other. One of the droids stepped away, revealing a body.

Elisa leaned closer trying to get a better view but lost her balance and fell head first into the doorway. The three Kraang droids spun around. "Stop the one that needs to be stopped!" One of them ordered.

[ Raph's P.O.V. ]

"There's obviously nothing going on here, so let's go!" Leonardo ordered, heading towards the staircase. I rolled my eyes, this is exactly why me and Elisa should've went in by ourselves.

"I know what I saw!" I barked, clenching my fists. Donnie rested a hand on my shoulder but I instantly pushed him away. I bet we could've gotten twice more work done if the guys hadn't showed up. Technically it was Elisa's fault, but I didn't want to blame it on her.

It's so frustrating trying to get my feelings across to her. I so badly want to let her know how I feel, instead of being a coward like Donnie, but I don't know how I feel. Then whenever I would try to talk to her she'd been in one of her moods, which always makes it worse.

"LET GO OF ME! LET GO!" Someone cried. "That sounds like Elisa!" I said, quickly pulling out my sai. I darted towards the staircase and slid down the railing. Two Kraang droids held Elisa by her arms and were carrying her out of the building.

I quickly hurled a shuriken at one of the droids, striking it right in the back of it's neck. The droid spun around and pulled out it's ray-gun. Donnie, Mikey and Leo all rushed down the stairs just in time. The Kraang droid began shooting beams at me but I quickly dodged them. I swung my sai at the droid, slashing it right across the cheek causing sparks to shoot out.

Leonardo dodged each and every ray that was shot at him and quickly grabbed Elisa and shoved her out of the way. "Leo, come on!" I shouted, quickly blocking each blow the Kraang droid attempted to land.

Donatello dodged each ray that shot at him and jabbed one of the droids in it's eye. Mikey grabbed one droid by his stomach and body-slammed him onto the ground, causing it to malfunction completely. The little brain crawled out of the robot, letting out a sharp cry.

Leonardo took care of the last droid while Donnie and Mikey helped Elisa to her feet. I followed them out of the building just to make sure Elisa was okay. As soon as we stepped outside, Elisa shoved my two little brothers off of her.

"What the fuck is wrong with you guys?" She barked, throwing her hands into the air. I furrowed my eyebrows in confusion. Is she seriously complaining right after we saved her ass?

"What're you talking about?" I said, crossing my arms. "If you and Mikey weren't too busy arguing, none of that would've happened!" She shouted. Arguing?! Are you serious? She was the one who went wandering off by herself. No wonder she gets hurt all the time, 'cause she thinks that she can fend for herself when she can't.

"We just saved your ass, Elisa, you should at least be thankful!" I protested. Leo jogged out of the building, a few bruises on his arms. "Oh, stick it in your shell!" She spat, walking away. Leo raised his eyebrow and exchanged a worried glance with Michelangelo.

I tossed my sai to the floor and dropped my face into my hands. Why does she have to be so stubborn all the time? Why can't she be grateful for once? We don't have to let her live with us, we can easily just kick her out but we decided to be nice.

"Raph, is everything okay?" Leonardo said as calmly as he could, trying hard not to piss me off. It was already too late. I spun around and stomped towards him. "We're supposed to be a team, we're the good guys! Her stubborn ass doesn't know how to say 'thanks' that's the problem!" I snarled. "Let's just go!" I snapped, picking up my sai from the floor.

'This is why I can never get my feelings across!' I thought as I led the boys back to our manhole. 'She has to act like a little bitch after we just saved her from being kidnapped. A normal person would say "thank you" but no she has to whine about how things didn't go her way. Well, if this is how it's gonna be like with her then she shouldn't be living with us at all!'


	6. 6 Confessions of A Frenemy

The Frenemy

Disclaimer: I DO NOT OWN ANY CHARACTERS OF THE TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLE FRANCHISE, THIS IS STRICTLY JUST A FANFIC

6 ~ Confessions of A Frenemy

Elisa and Leonardo stood before each other in their fighting stances, eyes locked on nothing but each other. "Hajime!" Master Splinter shouted. Elisa quickly kicked Leo's legs out from under him, causing him to hit the ground.

Leonardo scrambled to his feet and instantly ducked as Elisa swung her leg over his head. The two began to circle each other. "I'm not glass Leo, don't be afraid to kick my ass." Elisa said, dodging each and every blow.

"Hey, Martinez, we're just getting started." Leo chuckled. He quickly grabbed Elisa's wrist as she attempted to uppercut him and body slammed her onto the cold, hard ground.

"Yamei!" Splinter ordered. He slowly got up and approached the two. "You've been working very hard the past few weeks you've been here, Elisa, but you should work on your aim and your timing." He suggested. He held out his paw and gently lifted Elisa to her feet.

Leonardo and Elisa bowed respectfully to their teacher before exiting the dojo. "You've really improved your fighting skills." Leo observed. Elisa smiled and pushed a lock of her corkscrew brown hair behind her ear. "I needed something to occupy me while I'm staying here." Elisa responded, shrugging.

Leo turned on the balls of his feet to face her. "Speaking of which, that's kinda what I wanted to talk to you about after our training session." He announced. Elisa shoved her hands in her back pockets. She knew exactly where this was headed.

"I know that things have been tense between you and Raph, but this is his home too. The least you can do is apologize for how you acted the other night." Leonardo suggested, nodding towards his brother who sat on the couch reading one of his comics.

Elisa fixed her gaze on Raph. Maybe Leo's right, maybe she should apologize. After all, Raphael did save her life. He didn't have to do that, but he wanted to. "If you're gonna be staying with us then you have to get along with ALL of us." Leo pointed out.

Elisa sighed and ran a hand through her thin, curly hair. "Alright." She muttered. Leo flashed her a smile before heading to his room. Elisa made her way to the couch and plopped down next to Raph.

"Hey Red." She greeted warmly. Raphael glanced at her and brought the comic book closer to his face. "Hi." He mumbled. Elisa stared at the mutant for a while. He was so handsome yet so angry all the time...why was that? Why was anger his only emotion? Was he just afraid to show his true emotions in fear he'll get made fun of?

Elisa was dying to see more of Raph but he bottled up all his feelings and never showed his sensitive side. She grabbed the comic book out of Raph's hands and placed it on the coffee table. Raphael glared at her and crossed his arms. "I know that you're mad at me for how I acted the other day and I don't blame you. I can be a brat sometimes but-"

"Leo told you to come apologize didn't he?" Raphael said, looking Elisa deep in her hazel brown eyes. She bit her bottom lip and sighed. "Yes...but he's right, I had no reason to be mad at you." She responded weakly, avoiding his gaze.

Raphael rolled his eyes and went to pick up his comic again but Elisa quickly snatched the comic off the table and placed it behind her. "I'm not finished!" She snapped. The mutant crossed his arms and exhaled sharply. "Raphael, I really am sorry." Elisa said, taking the mutants hands into hers and looking deep into those mesmerizing emerald eyes.

Raphael quickly looked away. He really liked Elisa but at the same time he didn't want to like her. She was so stubborn and really moody all the time, Raph didn't want a girl like that. Elisa wasn't even grateful for half of the stuff the turtles did for her, which made Raphael even more mad at her. But the more he thought about the whole situation, the more he seemed to fall for her.

"Why are you so stubborn and moody all the time?" Raph questioned, turning towards Elisa again. "You act like we're forcing you to be here when it was YOUR choice to come to US for safety." Elisa stared up at the mutant and sighed, hesitating to answer his question.

She stayed silent for quite some time, mentally choosing what to say next. "I just..." She started, avoiding Raphael's gaze. He leaned closer towards her, preparing himself for what she was about to say. Elisa looked up at him and sighed impatiently, her eyes welling up with tears.

"You have no idea what I've been through the last twelve years of my life." Elisa finally replied, fighting back tears. Raph stayed quiet and gave her petite hands a gentle squeeze. Elisa closed her eyes and took a deep breath.

Raphael watched as Elisa sat still, not moving or breathing, like a statue. Finally she exhaled slowly and looked up at the mutant again. "My brother has been missing for five years." Elisa confessed, looking Raph deep in his eyes.

"Ever since we were little, Dylan and I have been tossed around to different orphanages. Then when we finally found a home, the lady didn't even want us." She explained. Raph felt Elisa tense up. This was probably her first time telling anyone what really went down in her life.

"What happened to your parents?" Raph built up the courage to ask. Elisa shrugged and held her breath. The only person who knew about what happened to her parents was Casey. Raphael would be the very first person to know about Elisa's past- out of the turtles that is.

The room grew deadly silent. Mikey was in Donnie room, most likely bugging him while he tinkered with Metalhead, Leonardo was in his own room watching reruns of Space Heroes and Master Splinter was in the dojo, meditating.

"Oroku Saki murdered my parents." Elisa said, breaking the silence. Se sounded so nonchalant as she said it but she still looked as if she can burst into tears at any moment. "Wait w-what?" Raphael stammered. "Shredder killed your parents?" He clarified.

Elisa slowly nodded, avoiding Raph's gaze. He shot out of his seat, nearly knocking the coffee table over. "Why didn't you tell us?!" Raphael barked. Elisa ran a hand through her hair and shook her head. "I couldn't." She muttered.

"Well, why couldn't you?" "Because!" Elisa snapped, leaping out of her seat. "Oroku Saki tried to convince my dad to join his ninja army for years. He said that it was very important that he got more highly trained martial artists to join his 'clan'."

"So my father did. Every weekend, he would take off in the middle of the night and say he was just going out for 'a walk.' This went on for months and my mom didn't like it at all. My father never told her where he went." Elisa explained.

"Soon, Oroku Saki starting sending my father and a few of his students to go jump some guys. At first, Dad didn't think anything of it...but then it began to get serious. Shredder started sending my dad to go kill people and that's when my father drew the line. He told Shredder that he didn't wanna be part of his army anymore...then he left."

Elisa paused for a minute to see if Raph would say anything, but he didn't so she continued on with her story. "This lady, who worked at the daycare me and Dylan occasionally went to, dropped us off at home...and as soon as we set foot in the house I knew something was up."

" I tried calling your mom, but she didn't pick up." Nancy announced, as she pulled into the driveway of the small, bright blue house. A four-year-old Elisa sat in the back of the car, next to Dylan. "She's at work." Elisa simply responded.

As soon as Nancy parked the car, Elisa unbuckled her seat belt and rushed out of the vehicle. Her hoodie flew off her head as she raced towards the front door of her house. "Slow down, Elisabeth." Nancy giggled, as she unbuckled Dylan out of his carseat.

Elisa banged on the front door and waited, a bright smile on her face. Dylan waddled over to his older sister and plopped down on the porch. "Try the doorbell." Nancy suggested. She was one of the workers at the local daycare Elisa and Dylan attended. Everyday, when daycare ended, she'd take them home.

As Elisa reached for the doorbell, the door was pushed open. Nancy quickly picked Dylan up from the floor and carried him inside, with Elisa marching behind them.

Everything looked the same as it was when Nancy came to pick the kids up. "Look out for the man in metal." Nancy said. Elisa quickly turned around to find Nancy holding a poorly ripped piece of paper. "Who's that?" Elisa asked, a worried look on her face.

Nancy's face suddenly turned white. She let go of the paper and let it drift to the floor. She carefully placed Dylan down on the ground and ran a hand through her dirty blonde hair. "Elisa, go take your brother into the living room, I have to make a phone call." Nancy ordered.

Elisa watched as Nancy dashed out of the kitchen and down the hallway. Dylan scrambled to his feet and grabbed his sister's hand. Elisa was about to leave when something rather odd caught her eye.

Behind the counter there was glass scattered all over the floor, most likely coming from one of the windows. Elisa quickly guided her brother out of the kitchen and down the hallway.

As they reached the living room, Elisa let out a blood-curdling scream. Dylan quickly covered his ears and began to cry. There was a trail of blood leading to their mother's dead body, lying on the couch...

Raphael stared at Elisa in bewilderment. Usually, when something that traumatic happens to someone they end up in a psychiatric ward. But he knew that Elisa was strong enough to get past that.

"My life is really fucked up, Raph, and it's hard for me to cope with it at times." Elisa said, looking deep into his emerald eyes. Suddenly, just looking at him, she began to feel better. She felt like a huge weight was lifted off of her shoulders.

Donnie strolled into the living room with April by his side, going on and on about how he upgraded Metalhead and how he's "ten times better than before." He quickly stopped talking when he noticed how close Elisa and Raphael sat.

"What's going on?" Donatello teased his older brother. Raph waved his hand at him, gesturing him to go away. Elisa looked up to find April staring at her.

"Nothing, we were talking about my training session earlier, that's all." Elisa said, forcing a smile. Raph sighed impatiently, he really wanted to finish talking to her. "Well, we're about to start OUR training session, so I'll go get Leo and Mikey." Donnie announced.

Raphael sighed impatiently and turned towards Elisa. "Don't worry, we'll finish this later." She reassured him. Raph gave her a pat on the shoulder before heading towards the dojo.

Elisa sighed and ran a hand through her hair. She hadn't realized that April was still in the room. "You're really throwing me under the bus, asking me to keep your little 'secret' from the boys." April said, causing Elisa to jump slightly. She turned around to find April standing behind her with her arms crossed.

"Is being nosy your hobby, because that's the second time you've eavesdropped on my conversation." Elisa spat. April shrugged, walking over to the couch so that she could face Elisa. "It's not my fault I don't trust you." She responded.

Elisa rolled her eyes, she was too tired to start up an argument. "You don't even know why I'm doing this but, honestly, I don't care what some nobody thinks of me." She quipped. She got up and began to make her way to Raph's room but April quickly stood in her way.

"Excuse me." Elisa began to raise her voice slightly. April shook her head and placed her hands on her hips. "The turtles are my friends and I hope I make it very clear that if you hurt them, you will regret it."

"Oh, really?" Elisa sarcastically gasped. April sighed impatiently and backed away from her. "You are so lucky that I don't tell Splinter and the boys about your little 'plan' right now." April muttered. She took a step towards Elisa and looked deep in her eyes.

"Why don't you tell them?" Elisa tested. "Why don't you rat me out so that I'll be out of your hair for good?" April scoffed and shook her head. 'She's trying so hard to make it seem like I'm the bad guy.' She thought as she turned and slowly walked away.

April quickly stopped and spun around. "I'm giving you a chance to walk away, Elisa." She finally answered. Elisa crossed her arms and waited for her to continue. "Karma's a bitch... So if I were you, I'd walk away."

And with that, April exited the room. Elisa clenched her fists and stared at the spot where April stood before she left. Maybe April's right, maybe she should walk away. Ever since she made the deal with Shredder, she's run into nothing but trouble.

Casey would still be there to help her find Dylan..but if she abandoned her mission, who knows what Shredder will do to her? It was a catch 22.

Elisa plopped down on the couch and dropped her face in her hands. April had her by the throat, but she was nice enough to give her a chance to make the right decision. "But what is the right decision?" Elisa said, shaking her head sadly.


	7. 7 Pretending and Regretting

The Frenemy

Disclaimer: I DO NOT OWN ANY CHARACTERS OF THE TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLE FRANCHISE, THIS IS STRICTLY JUST A FANFIC

A/N: This chapter is a bit short because I mainly wanted it to get straight to the point, but either way I hope you guys enjoy it. Also, I just wanted to say that Casey doesn't know about the turtles yet. He knows about Elisa's deal with Shredder but as far as he knows, the turtles are just some guys that Shredder wants.

7 ~ Pretending & Regretting

[ Elisa's P.O.V. ]

I jogged across the street, as soon as the light hit green, and made my way to The Grove. Hopefully Casey didn't ignore my text and would be there in the same corner booth we always sat.

I pushed the double doors open and quickly scanned the restaurant with my eyes, and let out a sigh of relief. Casey was sitting in our usual corner booth, but he wasn't alone.

It wasn't until I reached his booth that I noticed he sat with some girl. Both of them looked up at me, smiling brightly. "Oh hey, Lis'," Casey greeted, shooting up out of his seat. The girl looked at me observantly, as if I was a science project. "This is my good friend, Simone. Simone, this is Elisa." He said gesturing to me and the girl.

'Good friend?' I thought, enviously glaring at Simone. She had dirty blonde hair, in which she tied into a sock bun, and indigo colored eyes. I'm not gonna lie, she's beautiful, but her and Casey must be in a budding romance for him to he introducing her as his 'good friend.' He never introduced me to his other friends as his "good friend" and we were BEST FRIENDS!

Now was the worst time to be getting jealous since I had bigger problems to focus on. "Hey." I mumbled, forcing a smile. Simone exchanged a confused glance with Casey, then smiled back. She's very odd...for Casey's taste at least.

"Are you one of Casey's friends from school?" I sounded like a mother asking this question. "Uh, no, actually I moved here a few weeks ago. I met Casey here at The Grove." She responded, cheerfully. Ew.

I simply nodded, then turned back to Casey. Out of the corner of my eye, I seen Simone shoot me a dirty look. "Can I talk to you for a sec?" I asked. I could feel Simone's eyes burning a hole in my head.

Casey nodded quickly and pulled me away from his table. He probably caught the looks his 'good friend' was giving me. "What is it?" Casey said, in his most polite tone ever. I could tell he was itching to go back to his little rendezvous with the wicked witch of the west.

"April knows about the deal." I revealed. It all came out so fast, Casey failed to here what I said. "Wait, what?" He said, raising his eyebrows. I sighed, running a hand through my hair. "The girl who was with us at your apartment heard us talking about the deal I made with Oroku Saki." I explained how April threatened to tell the turtles about my "plan" if I didn't quit while I was ahead.

Casey pulled at his collar and turned to see if Simone still sat at the table. I rolled my eyes, "Hello! Earth to Casey!" I snapped. Casey turned to face me again, blushing embarrassingly. "Listen, Casanova, there are more important things going on than your date with Satan."

"Yes, I understand that, but let's not forget who got you into this mess." Casey replied, crossing his arms. Great! The only person who can help me at this point has his head in the clouds. I just needed him to somehow convince April not to tell the turtles. I needed more time.

I rolled my eyes. "Whatever. Go finish your date." I murmured. I pushed the double doors open and stomped out of the bistro. I had every right to be mad at him. Sure it was my own fault for getting myself into this whole mess but Casey did say he would help me no matter what.

On the other hand, I should be able to solve my own problems. As I made my way back to the turtles manhole, I began to go over every possible outcome. If I were to leave, Shredder would do more than torture me and go after the turtles and Master Splinter himself. If I stayed and continued on with my mission, April will end up blowing my cover which will lead to Shredder AND the turtles being upset with me.

Then if I tell the turtles myself, who knows what'll happen? Raphael will be pissed off because he would think I played him and the rest of the turtles will be disappointed. I should've just went looking for Dylan on my own. I should've left Shredder and the turtles alone.

The only question that was running through my mind ever since April found out about the deal, was: what would Raphael think? He was the only person I was concerned about. Forget Shredder, forget the rest of the turtles, forget Casey, forget everyone! Raph was the only person I was worried would hate me for eternity.

I shook this thought out of my head immediately. Ridiculous. Completely ridiculous. I couldn't fall for Raph, regardless of how handsome he was, I just couldn't. Then it would lead to me becoming attached and not being able to let go. First Casey and now Raphael. Why do emotions exist anyways?

Raphael sat alone in the kitchen, stirring what was left of his tea. It was so aggravating, his feelings towards Elisa. One day he's head-over-heels for her, then the next day he wants to bash her head in. Sometimes, he just wants to come right out and say it, "Elisa, I have feelings for you. I like you...no I'm in love with you."

But he was terrible at showing how he really felt, so he just replaced most of his emotions with anger. Elisa was able to see past his anger. She knew what it felt like to have to bottle up your feelings for the sake of others. Her and Raphael were alike, but so different.

Master Splinter entered the kitchen and headed towards the refrigerator. "April is going to have to go to the store again, we're out of milk." He sighed, closing the refrigerator. Raphael turned around in his chair to face him. "Sensei?" He said.

"Yes, my son?" Splinter replied, approaching the turtle. Raph quickly looked down at the floor and sighed. "When you first met Tang Shen, did you tell her that you liked her or did you wait?" He asked. Splinter tilted his head in an observant way. It was really weird because he was never asked a question like this before and what made it even more weird is that Raph was asking this question.

"I waited until I felt it was right to tell her." Master Splinter finally answered. He watched as Raph shifted uncomfortably in his seat. Raphael stayed silent for a few minutes, debating whether he wanted to ask another question. "Well, when is the right time to tell someone how you feel?" He said, avoiding his father's gaze.

Splinter raised an eyebrow. "It depends how strong your feelings are towards the person." He responded, watching his son like a hawk. "Is there a reason for all these questions?"

Raph's cheeks turned bright pink and he quickly turned away from his sensei. "No." He mumbled. Splinter chuckled and walked over towards where Raphael sat and placed a paw on his shoulder. "My son, it is very unprofessional to want to start a relationship with someone you live with." He warned him.

Raphael rolled his eyes and went back to stirring his tea. "But I am not going to stop you from what you are feeling." Splinter continued. "If you have feelings for Elisa, tell her. The worst she can say is no and even then, you can still walk away knowing that you had the courage to tell her."

Raph looked up at his sensei. He was right, he should tell Elisa how he feels. Sure, she pisses him off at times but that didn't stop him from liking her. "You're right." Raphael said, nodding his head slowly. "Thanks, sensei."

Master Splinter patted his son on the back before walking away. Raph got up from his chair and headed towards his room. He searched his drawers frantically for his Shell Cell. As soon as he found it, he texted Elisa. He set his phone down and plopped down on the bed. "The worst she can say is no." He whispered, placing his hands behind his head.

[ Elisa's P.O.V. ]

It wasn't until I entered the turtles' lair that I received Raph's text. It said, "Hey Elisa. Whenever you come home, we need to talk...it's important." What was important? Did April already tell the turtles about the deal? It hadn't even been a week since she found out!

I stared at his text for what seemed like an hour until I heard something moving behind me. I quickly spun around to find April shutting the front door behind her. "Did you tell the turtles about the deal?" I questioned her. April furrowed her eyebrows at me and crossed her arms. "Were you that eager to get rid of me?" I began to get closer to her.

"I told you I would give you time to make your decision." April calmly responded, backing up a little. I pulled out my phone and shoved it in her face. "Then what the hell is this?" I snapped. April glanced at the screen and shrugged. "He wants to talk, what's wrong with that?" She said, heading towards the kitchen.

I sighed impatiently and put my phone back in my pocket. April tossed her backpack on the couch and spun around. "Why are you always throwing crap at me?" She spat. I raised my eyebrows at her. This girl is really pushing my buttons. "Well maybe if you didn't stick your nose where it didn't belong, I wouldn't have to!" I raised my voice at her.

We both turned around to find Raphael standing behind the couch, a surprised look on his face. April shot me a dirty look before grabbing her bag and heading towards the dojo. I rolled me eyes and plopped down on the couch. "So I'm gonna pretend that didn't happen." Raphael announced. "Yeah, I'd really appreciate it if you did." I responded.

Raph sat down next to me and sighed, letting his shoulders drop. "So, I figured you got my message." He said, after a minute of awkward silence. I nodded, avoiding his gaze. Nothing but awkwardness filled the air.

He cleared his throat and took my hands into his, which completely took me by surprise since it happened so quickly. "Right now is probably the worst time to tell you this, since you have more important stuff to focus on, but I really need to get this out." He began.

I felt the hairs on my arms begin to raise and my heart begin to beat faster. I knew where this was headed but I was extremely nervous if it would turn out to be something completely different from what I thought it would be. "Okay." I responded.

"So...over the past few weeks, I've been really confused. I haven't been able to come to terms with what I want...but now I know." Raphael continued. I stared deeply into his beautiful emerald eyes. I could've sworn I heard his heart begin to beat faster, which made the moment even more special.

All of that was ruined by the sound of my phone going off. My face turned bright red, "Sorry," I murmured. Raph let go of my hands and sighed impatiently. I quickly grabbed my phone out of my pocket and stared at the screen. Casey had texted me.

C: Hey, do you wanna continue what we were talking about earlier at The Grove?

I bit my lip nervously and glanced at Raph. As much as I was dying to hear what he was about to say, this was much more important. "Well, what is it?" Raphael demanded, tapping his foot impatiently. I pushed a lock of my corkscrew brown hair behind my ear and sighed.

"Uh, I have to run a quick errand." I said, getting up quickly. Raph shot up out of his seat and followed me to the door. "What do you mean an errand?" He interrogated. I placed my phone back in my pocket and grabbed my hoodie off of the coat rack, and pulled it over my head.

"My friend is in town and she's leaving tomorrow morning, so I wanna say goodbye." I replied. It killed me to have to lie to him. "I promise you, it won't take that long. I'll be back before you know it so we can finish our talk, okay?"

Raph sighed and nodded in response. That was surprisingly easily. I honestly that it would take a wrestling match for him to let me go. "Okay, I'll be back in a few." I announced, exiting the lair.

It took me less than fifteen minutes to get to Casey's apartment since I jogged my way there. As soon as I got there, I found him standing outside the complex. "Hey." I panted. Casey raised his eyebrows at me. "Hey," He responded, shoving his hands in his pockets. "Look, we really gotta make this quick 'cause Simone is waiting for me upstairs."

I threw my hands in the air in frustration. "Are you fucking kidding me right now?!" I shouted. I was not going to share him with Simone whether she was with him or not. Whatever he was doing with her wasn't as important as what was going on at that moment. Sure it sounds conceited but it was true.

"I haven't seen you for weeks since we had that argument and the one time I'm free to talk, you're too busy with some girl you barely even know!" I continued. It really hurt knowing I couldn't even rely on the one person who's suppose to be my BEST FRIEND to be on my side.

"Simone isn't just some girl! I know her more than you think!" Casey objected. "She hasn't been here that long for you to be introducing her as your good friend!" I pointed out. Casey sighed, letting his shoulders drop.

"I don't want to argue with you, okay?" He said, looking deep into my eyes. I shook my head sadly. "It seems like every time I try to talk to you, it ends up in an argument." He continued.

Silence filled the air for a few minutes before he cleared his throat. "Never mind." I mumbled, adjusting my hoodie. "This is my problem, I'll solve it on my own." I shrugged. Casey ran a hand through his jet black hair and sighed. "Elisa, wait!"

"You know, it really hurts, knowing that I can't even count on my 'best friend' to be there for me." I said. Casey jogged over to me and placed his hands on my shoulders. "I want to be there for you, Elisa, but you make it so hard when you shut me out." He sighed. He sounded so sad.

I shook my head, trying hard not to start crying. "That girl, April, she's threatening to tell the guys about my deal with Oroku Saki." I revealed. My eyes started to burn with tears. "And that's not even the worst part, I'm in love with one of them which makes it even harder to leave. So what am I supposed to do?" I sobbed.

Casey wrapped his arms around my waist and pulled me into a warm embrace. My life was turning upside down and there was nothing I could do about it. I quickly pulled away, wiping my tears. I completely forgot about my talk with Raphael.

"What can I do to help?" Casey asked. I looked up to find Simone standing in the main lobby of the apartment complex. "However and whenever you can, I need you to convince April to change her mind about the whole situation. I need way more time than what she's giving me."

Casey opened his mouth to say something. "I know you don't know her that well but you need to figure something out. Look, we're gonna have to finish this later 'cause there's something I need to do."

Before Casey could respond, I dashed down the street. I needed to tell Raph how I felt before it was too late. Every single day, April was getting closer and closer to telling the boys. Heck, she could tell them tomorrow for all I know! But regardless of when she told them, Raph needed to know how I felt and soon.

As soon as I reached the turtles manhole, I lifted the cover and dropped down. Everything was dark but I still managed to make my way to the turtles lair. I pushed the door open and ran past Leonardo, nearly knocking him over.

Raphael was nowhere to be found. "Where's Raph?" I asked, turning towards Leo who had a shocked expression on his face. He pointed to Raph's room and watched as I burst into the room.

Raphael sat at the edge of his bed, watching some cartoon. He looked up at me and crossed his arms. "Took you long enough." He grumbled. For once I was glad to hear his rude remarks.

I slowly approached the mutant. "You're such an asshole." I said. I wrapped my arms around him and crashed my lips against his. This was the moment I was longing for. He kissed me back gently and wrapped his arms around my waist, and pulled me onto his lap.

I wanted nothing more than to be here, in his arms. I felt like a huge weight was being lifted from my shoulders. It was truly the best feeling in the world. We both awkwardly pulled away from each other and blushed.

I looked deep into his eyes and smiled brightly. "You really don't know how long I've been wanting to do that." I giggled. Raph chuckled and leaned in to kiss me one more time. "Then that makes two of us." He whispered.

I hugged him tightly, never wanting to let go. I haven't felt this good in so long. This is exactly what I needed, a break from everything else, something positive to focus on. I have to admit, his lips tasted a bit salty but it didn't bother me at all. All I wanted was to be with him, I didn't care if he was a giant walking-talking turtle, I just wanted him.

Meanwhile...

Simone sat by the window and held the phone close to her ear. "I trust that you've been carrying out your mission." The Shredder said. Simone smirked and pushed a lock of her dirty blonde hair behind her ear. "Don't worry, sensei, everything is going exactly as planned...and I've only just begun."


End file.
